On Monday morning, fans who had signed up for Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan presale last month received an alert that they could request to purchase two tickets in a “limited-time opportunity,”
Millions of fans flocked to purchase tickets via pre-sale on Nov. 15 but were turned away due to overwhelming and “historically unprecedented” demand, according to a statement issued by the ticket site. Tons of fans who did get into the queue had to wait for over two hours to get a chance at purchasing tickets.
The note goes on to explain that the ticket purchasing window will begin before Dec. 23, with tickets for each city being staggered by tour date in each city. Fans will receive additional instructions on how to submit ticket requests at an as-yet-unannounced future date.
Following the initial drama, Ticketmaster shared a formal apology directed at both Swift and her fans.
The fiasco resulted in a domino effect of action including a lawsuit on behalf of more than two dozen Swifties against Ticketmaster’s parent company Live Nation Entertainment. The suit accused the company of “unlawful conduct,” and claimed that the company — which is the world’s largest ticketing outlet — violated antitrust laws, among other allegations.
Additionally, Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Mike Lee (R-UT) have announced they will be holding a hearing to examine the lack of competition in the ticketing industry, and Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Ct.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tn.) have written to the chair of the Federal Trade Commission inquiring about the agency’s plans to fight the use of bots in ticketing.
Swift, who just released her album “Midnights,” has set 52 dates for her U.S. Eras Tour — marking the trek as her biggest tour to date, and one that could break her own record for gross ticket sales in North America. Opening acts for the U.S. leg of the tour are Paramore, Haim, Phoebe Bridgers, Beabadoobee, Girl in Red, Muna, Gayle, Gracie Abrams and Owenn. The Eras Tour is her first since the 2018 Reputation stadium tour.
